


How Lucky Can You Get?

by Magicofisis



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Action/Adventure, Friendship, Post-Hogwarts, Romance, The Quidditch Pitch: Leaving Feast
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2005-12-24
Updated: 2005-12-24
Packaged: 2018-10-27 18:15:25
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,093
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10814190
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Magicofisis/pseuds/Magicofisis
Summary: Harry and Ron set out to destroy the last Horcrux and discover that it’s their lucky day!





	How Lucky Can You Get?

**Author's Note:**

> Note from Annie, the archivist: this story was originally archived at [The Quidditch Pitch](http://fanlore.org/wiki/The_Quidditch_Pitch), which went offline in 2015 when the hosting expired, at a time I was not able to renew it. I contacted Open Doors, hoping to preserve the archive using an old backup, and began importing these works as an Open Doors-approved project in April 2017. Open Doors e-mailed all authors about the move and posted announcements, but may not have reached everyone. If you are (or know) this creator, please contact us using the e-mail address on [The Quidditch Pitch collection profile](http://archiveofourown.org/collections/thequidditchpitch/profile).

  
Author's notes: Dedicated to [](http://www.livejournal.com/userinfo.bml?user=aidendavis)[**aidendavis**](http://www.livejournal.com/users/aidendavis/) for his birthday because he loves teh Harry/Ron. This fic owes much to [](http://www.livejournal.com/userinfo.bml?user=shocolate)[**shocolate**](http://www.livejournal.com/users/shocolate/) and her as-yet-unposted novel-length Ron/Hermione story, which got me thinking about Horcruxes and such. I think the only idea of hers that I borrowed was the Horcrux ooze – it just makes so much sense. And, as always, heartfelt thanks go to my wonderful Kate for the beta. How lucky can _I_ get? (ETA: And thanks to [](http://www.livejournal.com/userinfo.bml?user=crikkita)[**crikkita**](http://www.livejournal.com/users/crikkita/) for the spellcheck!)  


* * *

Ron couldn’t keep from trembling, even as he gripped Harry’s hand tightly. He could feel the magical energy all around them, pulsating and turbulent, as if there were spirits surrounding this place who knew they didn’t belong and who were prepared to give away their presence as they crouched beneath the Invisibility Cloak. Harry’s palm was sweaty against his; it was the only sign that he might be a little nervous.  
  
“Cold?” whispered Harry, so close that his breath warmed Ron’s cheek.  
  
“A little,” lied Ron. “I’ll be fine.”  
  
He wondered if he would be fine, though. Before, there had been three of them: he and Hermione mapping out plans for every contingency, and Harry following through with action, boldly tackling the most impossible tasks and succeeding through pure will and dumb luck. But Hermione hadn’t reacted quickly enough last time, and her momentary panic had cost her dearly. She was of no use to them now, hidden away at St. Mungo’s while the healers tried to find a counter-curse to restore her eyesight. The three of them had destroyed the Horcrux, but at a very steep price.  
  
Harry let go of Ron’s hand and dug into the pocket of his jacket. He pulled out two tiny crystal vials shimmering with a golden liquid. “Here, take this,” he said, handing one of the vials to Ron.  
  
“What is— Harry! This is Felix Felicis! Where’d you get it?”  
  
Harry clapped his hand across Ron’s mouth. “Shhh, Ron, keep your voice down. I got it from Slughorn last week. Cost me more than a Firebolt to get him to part with it.”  
  
“Why didn’t you tell me you had this?” whispered Ron as he popped off the cork. He watched Harry toss his back and then quickly followed suit.  
  
Harry slipped his hand back into Ron’s. “I wanted to give you a chance to back out without being influenced by the potion.”  
  
Ron turned to face his friend. “Harry, you know I’d never do that. I’m going to be beside you, no matter what.”  
  
“Yeah? That’s what Hermione said, and look at her now.”  
  
Ron shook his head. “She’s never been good in a crisis. Remember how she got attacked in the Department of Mysteries? And let’s not forget her panicking because there was no wood for a fire to kill the Devil’s Snare that time. We should never have let her come with us.”  
  
“We couldn’t have stopped her, and you know it. But I’m not going to risk anything happening to you, so while I was at Hogwarts last week, I paid Slughorn a little visit.”  
  
Ron had already felt the warmth of the potion wash through his body and pool in the pit of his stomach. His nerves vanished, and he knew, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that they would be able to find and destroy the snake, Nagini, which they were sure was the final Horcrux. Once she was gone, Harry would have a clear shot at Voldemort, who was undoubtedly nearby.  
  
Ron lightly squeezed Harry’s hand. “I feel really good about this, Harry,” he whispered.  
  
“Slughorn warned us not to get overconfident,” breathed Harry, “but I feel good about it, too.”  
  
“I think we need to go further into the woods,” said Ron. He let go of Harry’s hand and started to rise. “Something tells me there will be a clue when we go another half-mile.”  
  
Harry jumped to his feet and spun Ron around. He shoved his hand into Ron’s again and put his lips right up next to Ron’s ear, hissing, “Don’t let go of me again. Even with Felix, we could be ambushed and the _Obtego Amicus_ would be useless.”  
  
“Sorry,” muttered Ron, resolving not to upset Harry again. _Obtego Amicus_ was a brilliant discovery of Hermione’s. If properly cast, it would allow a wizard’s defensive spells to protect not only the wizard, but also anyone else he was touching. They’d taken to casting it on each other before going on any of these outings, on the theory that as long as they were going to stay close together anyway, they might as well have the security of each other’s protection spells. As a practical matter, Harry was by far the fastest spellcaster, but if several Death Eaters attacked them, they could each focus on one while protecting each other. Plus, it was sort of comforting to hold hands with your best friend while you were in danger.  
  
They set forth on a course that would bring them further into the woods, stopping every so often to listen for signs of life. When they’d walked for about five minutes, Harry spied a clearing and led Ron to it. Hiding just outside the clearing, he pushed Ron back against a tree, whispering, “Let’s wait here.”  
  
“Here? Why?”  
  
“I don’t know,” answered Harry. “It’s just a hunch.”  
  
Funny things happened when you took Felix Felicis, so Ron didn’t question any longer. He leaned against the tree, clasping Harry’s hand, and waited. No more than three minutes passed before they heard a man walking through the woods and humming to himself. Ron almost peed in his pants when he recognized Wormtail, who was now sporting a creepy silver hand. He was muttering to himself as he walked.  
  
“Go find Nagini, he says,” grumbled Wormtail. “Always sending me off to do his dirty work or to find that damned snake like I’m a common house-elf.” He stopped in the clearing and looked around, but seeing nothing, he continued through the trees, walking right past the spot where Harry and Ron were hidden beneath the Invisibility Cloak.  
  
Ron could hear Harry’s breathing speed up, and he knew that Harry must be itching to practice _Avada Kedavra_ , but Wormtail was their best chance at finding Nagini, so Ron caught Harry’s eye and shook his head. Harry smiled an acknowledgement that Ron knew him too well.  
  
They followed Wormtail at a distance, carefully coordinating their steps so as not to make any unnecessary noise. Ahead, they saw Wormtail stop and sniff the air.  
  
Almost as quiet as the breeze, Harry whispered, “I hear her. She’s close by.”  
  
“Can you hear what she’s saying?” breathed Ron.  
  
Harry shook his head. _Too far away_ , he mouthed. Despite the confidence that the Felix had given him, adrenaline began to pump through Ron’s veins. They were so close to their target now; he and Harry had mentally prepared for this moment for weeks. It was Ron’s job to watch for the unforeseen dangers – the seat-of-the-pants contingency planning, if you will. At the moment, the biggest risk was their discovery by Wormtail, although he appeared to be in his own little world, crabbing audibly about this and that.  
  
They crept forward another fifty feet, Harry nodding fervently beside Ron as the snake voice that only he could hear became closer and clearer. They stopped dead in their tracks, and Ron leant in to say something to Harry when they were suddenly thrown to the ground as an enormous snake dropped on them from a low-hanging tree branch. Careful to keep their left hands clasped together, Harry scrambled to find the snake’s head. Ron’s attention jumped to Wormtail, who had heard the noise and turned on his heel, shouting, “Who’s there?”  
  
Harry knocked the snake out at once, and Ron blocked Wormtail’s _Expelliarmus_ spell with a shield charm. Harry’s stunning spell missed Wormtail, but Ron’s was dead on, and they watched the traitor fall backwards onto the patchy grass.  
  
Harry and Ron crawled out from beneath the Invisibility Cloak and gasped when they saw just how big the snake really was. Harry prodded it with his wand, but it was still knocked out.  
  
“Are you sure this is Nagini?” whispered Ron.  
  
Harry glared at him as if he was insane. “How many snakes like this do you think there are running wild around the English countryside? Yes, I’m sure this is her. I recognize her as the one that bit your dad.”  
  
As reptile specimens went, Nagini was beautiful, and Ron was _almost_ sorry that she would have to be destroyed. But considering the overwhelming evidence that she had been used as the final Horcrux, there was nothing to do but snuff her.  
  
They backed away and Harry took careful aim. He’d never used _Avada Kedavra_ on a living thing before, although he’d spent weeks with Mad-Eye Moody learning how to do it. This particular living thing was possessed by pure evil, so he had no hesitation about killing her. With focused intensity, Harry cast the killing curse, and they watched as the snake’s jaw dropped open and gold sparks flew out of her mouth. Seconds later, a dark, viscous substance oozed from the snake, which they presumed to be the remnants of the Horcrux.  
  
Harry and Ron stood watching, mesmerized by the sight. With one Unforgivable Spell, the last remaining obstacle to killing Voldemort had been removed. They whirled around when they heard a rustling in the leaves behind them. Wormtail was stirring, though not yet fully conscious.  
  
“What do you suppose we should do with him?” asked Ron. He wasn’t prepared to kill him, and he knew that although Harry was fully capable of it, he shouldn’t be distracted from his mission.  
  
Harry callously shot another _Stupify_ charm in Wormtail’s direction, and his movements ceased. “Let’s just tie him up for now and let the Aurors deal with him later.”  
  
Ron walked over to the spot where he had collapsed and bound him with magical ropes to a large tree. He pocketed Wormtail’s wand and returned to where Harry was still gazing at Nagini.  
  
Harry turned to him, grinning madly. “We did it, Ron! We destroyed the last Horcrux!”  
  
Ron embraced him, and the two hugged each other tightly. He knew that Harry had a good a chance at finishing off You-Know-Who now. Then this nightmare would be over and they could try to resurrect some semblance of a normal life.  
  
He pulled back from the hug to gaze at Harry’s face and was greeted with something altogether surprising: Harry’s lips on his. Ron didn’t even take time to think before returning Harry’s kiss. It seemed like the most natural thing in the world to kiss his mate.  
  
Their kisses expressed a shared joy at their accomplishment – the final Horcrux, the last piece in the puzzle before the final endgame. Almost imperceptibly, however, their kissing became more passionate and increasingly sexual. Harry’s hand curled around to the back of Ron’s neck and he pulled Ron closer while kissing deeper.  
  
Ron loved the feeling of Harry’s lips pressing against his; firmer than Hermione’s kisses, and more enthusiastic. He was surprised that Harry was kissing him like this, but not at all unhappy about it. He caressed Harry’s cheek with his fingertips and opened his eyes – Harry was staring at him.  
  
“Um, what are we doing?” murmured Ron, resting his forehead against Harry’s.  
  
Harry smiled, and Ron noticed that the brilliant green of his irises had nearly disappeared behind lust-dilated pupils. “I’ve been wanting to kiss you for ages, and I figured with the Felix potion, you might not punch my lights out.”  
  
Ron pulled back to look at Harry’s face, but he did not let go of him. “Why would I do that? I like kissing you.” Ron noticed Harry’s dimple flash as his mate smiled again. God, he was cute. Why hadn’t they done this before?  
  
“I didn’t know if you’d be open to the idea of kissing a boy,” said Harry hesitantly. “And, well, there’s Hermione…”  
  
Ron stomach dropped. Oh yeah. That’s why they hadn’t done this before. He was suddenly consumed with guilt, and it must have shown on his face because Harry’s smile faded instantly.  
  
“Yeah. Well. About Hermione… See, the thing is, Harry, Hermione and I haven’t gotten along for a pretty long time, and I was sort of waiting for her to get annoyed and break up with me. Except now she’s blind, and I’d be a right git if I broke up with her, wouldn’t I? It’s sort of awkward, you know?”  
  
“So what are you saying?” asked Harry.  
  
“Screw Hermione and let me kiss you again.”  
  
Harry’s lips were on his again in a flash. Ron still didn’t understand why Harry was doing this or why he was letting him, but it didn’t matter because it felt so good and seemed so right. Harry slid his tongue between Ron’s lips, and Ron instinctively began to suck on it. Harry moaned, and so did Ron. Following Harry’s lead, Ron wrapped his arms around Harry, and he couldn’t stop himself from sliding one hand slowly down Harry’s back until it came to rest on his arse. Soon Harry’s body was pressed tight against Ron’s, so that he could feel Harry’s erection digging into his thigh. The knowledge that Harry was getting this excited from kissing him sent all of Ron’s blood shooting to his cock. Christ, what exactly was going on here? Harry felt just as hard as he did, but he couldn’t possibly want to…could he? Harry was making him feel things he hadn’t felt in over a year, when he first started dating Hermione. God help him, but he wanted Harry _that_ way.  
  
“Harry,” he panted, “I really hope you’re not joking about this.”  
  
Harry pushed his hips forward so that his cock ground into Ron’s thigh again. “Does this feel like I’m joking? I want you, Ron, and I’ll take it as far as you’ll let me.”  
  
Harry’s words shot right from Ron’s ears to his groin. Okay, then, he did want to do _that_. He kissed Harry deeply as his brain worked feverishly to make this make sense. “Why now?” he finally asked. “We’ve been alone together for most of the week and you never said anything.  
  
Harry nodded. “I promised myself that I wouldn’t bring it up unless we found all the Horcruxes. I didn’t want to make you uncomfortable and I wasn’t certain you’d be very keen on the idea of me kissing you. But now I’ve got to face off against Voldemort. I don’t want to die without you knowing how I feel.”  
  
“You’re not gonna die,” shot back Ron immediately. “You’re Harry Potter, and you’re the luckiest bloke I know, even without drinking Felix. We’ve worked too hard to have you fail now.” He took Harry’s face in his hands and glared into his eyes. “Besides, I refuse to be part of some ‘last rights’ ritual.”  
  
“I didn’t mean it like that,” said Harry. “I just meant that it’s important to me that you know I—” He hesitated, but Ron refused to break eye contact. “I’m in love with you.”  
  
Ron blinked several times, trying to get past his shock. It was one thing for Harry to fancy him, but… God. “I, um…” he spluttered, staring at his feet.  
  
“You don’t have to say anything, Ron,” continued Harry. “I don’t expect you feel the same. I only wanted you to know – just in case.”  
  
Ron swallowed. “It’s just that I wasn’t expecting… I thought you and Ginny… What about Ginny?” He looked up at Harry’s face and noticed it was flushed.  
  
“I haven’t dated Ginny for over a year. Somewhere along the line, I stopped thinking about her and started seeing you that way. Perhaps it’s a case of ‘out of sight, out of mind’, or maybe ‘love the one you’re with’, but I don’t really feel romantic about her anymore.”  
  
“Blimey. You’ve lost your feelings for Ginny the same way I’ve lost mine for Hermione.”  
  
“Lucky, isn’t it?”  
  
“Felix,” said Ron. He leaned forward to kiss Harry again, his head still spinning over Harry’s admission of love. Did he love Harry back? Ron wasn’t sure, but he could certainly get used to the kissing. He snaked his tongue between Harry’s lips and Harry pulled him closer. They stared at each other as they kissed, and Ron lost himself in Harry’s eyes.  
  
“Perhaps we shouldn’t snog in the middle of the forest with Voldemort hiding nearby,” sighed Harry after a minute. “It would be just like him to ruin this for us.”  
  
Harry’s eyes were glistening, gazing at Ron seductively, and Ron had never seen anyone so beautiful. “Let’s go back to the camp, then,” replied Ron.  
  
He reached for his wand, but Harry grabbed his sleeve. “No, I have a better idea. Remember that spot by the lake where we washed up yesterday? It’s more secluded than the campsite, and prettier, too.”  
  
“Yeah, all right,” said Ron.  
  
Ron arrived at the lake first and immediately noticed an acrid stench in the air. He tried to investigate, but as he stepped away from the lakeshore, the smoke became thicker, and his visibility was almost nil.  
  
Harry appeared with a crack a minute later, clutching the Invisibility Cloak he’d dislodged from beneath Nagini. “God, what’s that smell?” asked Harry, his nose wrinkled with disgust.  
  
“I can’t tell,” Ron answered. “The smoke is too thick to see very far. It seems to be coming from the direction of our campsite, though.”  
  
“We’d better check it out, just in case,” said Harry. He cast a bubblehead charm on himself and motioned for Ron to do the same. They disappeared beneath the Invisibility Cloak and headed towards the smoke.  
  
Ron and Harry hadn’t gone more than fifty feet when they saw a band of costumed Death Eaters crossing their path at close range. It appeared that one was chastising two others for setting a tent ablaze – Harry and Ron’s tent, to be sure.  
  
“You idiots!” shouted the angry Death Eater. “We might have been able to capture them in the middle of the night and deliver them to the Dark Lord, but now you’ve gone and announced our presence. We must alert the Dark Lord at once. Soon this forest will be overtaken by Aurors.”  
  
Harry and Ron held back, allowing the Death Eaters to get a fair distance in front of them. Ron was curious as to why they didn’t simply Apparate to wherever the Dark Lord was hiding, but he was grateful for their luck. Not only had they avoided Apparating directly into the flames, but now they were going to be led directly to the Dark Lord himself. As they moved away from the campsite, the smoke cleared, and they ended their bubblehead charms.  
  
Even as he had the thought, he began to panic. Meeting You-Know-Who, now that all of the Horcruxes had been destroyed, meant the inevitable confrontation was going to happen sooner, rather than later. “Harry,” he breathed, “are you ready for this?”  
  
“We have at least ten hours of Felix left,” whispered Harry. “There’s never going to be a better opportunity to succeed than right now.”  
  
While he was correct on this point, it still made Ron’s blood run cold. “Except that you have no other backup than me, and this place is crawling with Death Eaters in addition to You-Know-Who. You realize this is crazy, don’t you?”  
  
Harry stopped and wrapped his arms around Ron. “I know it seems that way,” he said, pressing a kiss against Ron’s lips, “but I think that’s why I’ll succeed. I don’t want to put you in any more danger than you’re already in, so if you want, you can Apparate back to Headquarters and see who’s there to help.”  
  
“I’m not leaving you for anything,” huffed Ron in a whispered protest. “Just promise me you won’t let him get started on his evil overlord speech or anything. Sneak in, snuff him and Apparate the hell out of there. We can meet at our spot by the lake.”  
  
Harry smiled at Ron’s undying loyalty and kissed him hard. “Right. No speeches – just kill him and leave.” He started to pull away, but Ron held him close.  
  
“And Harry,” he muttered, “I love you too.” He winked at Harry and Harry blushed.  
  
Ron knew it was asking a lot of Felix Felicis to protect them from You-Know-Who, but he had no choice but to face his fears and follow after Harry. He couldn’t help but feel that Harry had Destiny on his side, and he hoped that applied to Harry’s friends as well. They hurried silently after the Death Eaters’ retreating forms. He startled a bit when Harry grabbed his hand, but then Ron remembered that they were still under _Obtego Amicus_.  
  
They stopped when they got to the edge of a clearing with a tiny cottage. The Death Eaters had disappeared, and Ron presumed they’d gone inside.  
  
“What do we do now?” hissed Ron into Harry’s ear. “We can’t just go waltzing inside; that would be suicide.”  
  
“I wish there was some way we could find out which room he’s in.”  
  
Ron reached into his jacket and pulled out an Extendable Ear. With a shrug, he tossed out the tail and watched it slither across the ground.  
  
“There’s no way they haven’t Imperturbed the place,” scoffed Harry.  
  
The tail of the Extendable Ear worked its way through a window. Ron held it up to his ear and smirked. He could plainly hear the Death Eaters they’d just followed arguing amongst themselves. He handed the earpiece to Harry, with a whispered, “Felix.”  
  
“The Dark Lord will be coming down for tea any moment. We’ll have to inform him of the situation,” spat the angry Death Eater they’d heard before.  
  
“He’ll kill me!” another voice cried quietly. “I didn’t think—”  
  
“That’s just the problem. You didn’t think, you imbecile. Now Potter’s run off to fetch his Auror friends – they’ll be all over us by nightfall.”  
  
Harry could hear one of the Death Eaters whimpering uncontrollably. “You don’t know he’s found out about it. The campsite was empty. Perhaps they’ve not yet discovered the fire.”  
  
“Don’t be ridiculous. Shhh, I heard footsteps overhead.”  
  
Harry pulled back the Extendible Ear and handed it to Ron. “Voldemort is inside, but I couldn’t tell how many other Death Eaters there are. At least the six we saw before. They’re going to tell Voldemort about our campsite, and they expect Aurors to be here by dusk. I need to get inside, Ron.”  
  
Ron thought for a moment. “All right, I have an idea, but I don’t like it much. It will require us to split up.”  
  
“It doesn’t matter, if you think it will work, then we’ll have to do it.” Harry absently stroked Ron’s arm as he said this, but he seemed determined to carry on.  
  
“Well, I’ll create a diversion outside and draw the Death Eaters from the cottage. Then you sneak in under the Invisibility Cloak, kill You-Know-Who, and Apparate out of there.” Ron reached up to stroke Harry’s cheek with his thumb. “I know it’s a long shot, but we’ve got Felix on our side.”  
  
Harry nodded in agreement. “This is our best chance. If we wait until they’ve told Voldemort about the campsite, he’ll move on and we might never find him. And this is my second time taking Felix in two years; Slughorn said I’d need to wait about another ten years before I take it again, or it will be toxic.”  
  
Ron nodded, trying to look much braver than he felt. It was insane trying to draw the attention of Death Eaters, but what other choice did he have? “We should have some backup, though,” said Ron. “What if some of the Death Eaters stay behind with You-Know-Who, or they go back inside before you’ve finished him off?”  
  
“We don’t have time,” replied Harry urgently. “They’re going to tell him about the campsite any moment, and he might leave immediately. Look, Lupin is waiting at Grimmauld Place for word – I told him something might be happening today if we could swing it – so after you lure the Death Eaters away, Apparate there and have Lupin alert the Order.”  
  
“You’re just trying to force me out of harm’s way,” complained Ron. “I’m not leaving you, Harry.”  
  
“Ron, I swear I’m not. There’s nothing I’d like better than to have you here holding my hand. But we have to be practical. If all goes as planned and I’m able to finish him off, there are going to be a lot of pissed off Death Eaters with no leader to control them. We have to alert the Aurors.”  
  
Ron wrapped his arms tightly around Harry. “I hate it when you’re right. And I hate having to leave you. Kill that bastard, Harry. Kill him for what he did to your parents and to Ginny and my dad, and for interrupting us by the lake before we ever had a chance to fool around.”  
  
Harry chuckled. “We’ll get our chance, you’ll see. Meet me at our spot by the lake as soon as you’ve found Lupin. I’ll go there as soon as I’m done with Voldemort.”  
  
Harry kissed Ron thoroughly. “Let’s get on with it,” he said finally. “Here, you take the Cloak.”  
  
“No way. You’re going to need it more than I will. If there are Death Eaters that refuse to leave, you’ll need to get past them. It’ll take me a minute or two to get into position. Then you’d better be ready to go.”  
  
 _Come on, Felix_ , thought Ron as he disappeared back into the thick of the woods. One of the benefits of growing up with Fred and George was that he knew all about creating diversions. Ron’s plan was to create a few explosions and then Apparate a bunch of times, thus giving the illusion that there was an army of Aurors Apparating in rather than one scared eighteen-year-old wizard.  
  
Ron set off the first explosion and Apparated to his next spot. He didn’t linger in one place any longer than it would take to set off the next explosion. After five or six, he could see a group of Death Eaters emerging from the cottage and setting off in the direction of where he’d been a minute before. Flashes of light went soaring through the trees, and it was only Ron’s constant and erratic movements that kept him out of danger. Well, that and the Felix Felicis. Ron’s stunning spells flew through the air, expertly hitting their intended targets.  
  
“How many are there?” Ron heard one Death Eater shout to the others. No one responded, and Ron couldn’t really stop to listen anyway. He had a scare when he accidentally Apparated into the line of fire of a Death Eater’s hex, but luckily, he ducked in time to avoid injury. He shot back a hex of his own that caught the Death Eater right in the chest.  
  
When Ron thought he’d given Harry enough time to get in and find You-Know-Who, he took a deep breath and Apparated to the front door of number twelve Grimmauld Place.  
  
Much to Ron’s surprise, he opened the door to find half of the Order of the Phoenix waiting in the lounge. Lupin sprang to his feet when Ron entered, and the room went deathly silent.  
  
“Harry’s message was cryptic, so I gathered anyone I could find, just in case,” said Lupin. “What’s going on?”  
  
“Harry’s trying to kill You-Know-Who even as we speak,” panted Ron. “There are at least six Death Eaters, including Wormtail, but we’ve got him tied up. I stunned a few of them before I left, so they might still be in the woods.” He told them exactly where to Apparate and collapsed onto a couch to catch his breath while the room quickly emptied with deafening cracks.  
  
Ron silently summoned a glass of water and gulped it down in several big swallows. His breathing returned to normal, and his heart calmed down enough to try to Apparate back. He toyed with the idea of going directly back to the cottage, but Harry had said to meet by the lake, and there was no harm in checking there first.  
  
*~*~*  
  
When he appeared at their spot, Ron surveyed the shoreline and saw no one. The smell and smoke was gone, but there was no Harry either. He looked at his watch; it had been nearly twenty minutes since he’d set off the first explosion. Unsure of what to do, he turned to face the direction of the cottage.  
  
A figure appeared from out of nowhere: a figure which had just emerged from beneath an Invisibility Cloak and was now running towards him. Ron’s heart leapt for joy as he ran to meet Harry. They embraced fiercely.  
  
“I did it!” shouted Harry. “He’s dead!”  
  
Ron held him tight as they continued to jump for joy. “I knew you would. God, Harry, it’s finally over!”  
  
After they finally calmed down long enough for Ron to ask for details, Harry told him of sneaking into the cottage and literally running into Snape, who seemed to know it was Harry and who led him directly to the room where Voldemort was waiting for his tea.  
  
“And then Snape whispered to me, ‘I can guarantee you only three minutes alone with him,’ before he calmly told Voldemort that he was going to investigate the cause of the commotion outside.” Harry stopped his narrative to kiss Ron and grab hold of his hand. “Voldemort knew I was there – it was as if he could see through the Cloak, or feel my presence or something. So I quickly gathered up my courage and cast the killing spell.”  
  
“Just like that? No warning or anything?” gasped Ron with wide-eyed surprise.  
  
Harry smirked. “You said not to wait for his evil overlord speech, and besides, there was no one else there to be impressed. I snapped his wand in two and then kicked him a couple of times to make sure he was truly dead. After that, I walked out of the place and headed here.”  
  
Ron smiled, obviously impressed. “What about Snape? Did you talk to him on the way out?”  
  
“No. I bet he was long gone seconds after he left Voldemort. Considering that his freedom depends on my willingness to say that he helped me, I suspect he didn’t rate his chances knowing that the Order might show up.”  
  
Harry wrapped his arms possessively around Ron’s waist, and kissed him again, more slowly than before and much more passionately. Ron was weak in the knees when he breathlessly asked, “So what’s next?”  
  
Harry looked at his watch. “I figure we have about eight hours of Felix left. Who knows – maybe I’ll get lucky,” he said with a grin.  
  
“Or I will,” agreed Ron.  
  
Harry stepped back from Ron for a moment, saying, “But first I’d better let the Order know that you and I are okay and that we’re celebrating the demise of Voldemort.” He took out his wand and cast a Patronus, a magnificent stag that went tearing off into the forest. “There – that’s taken care of. Now I want to show you this little place I’ve found,” and Harry began to lead Ron closer to the lakeshore, behind a thicket of bushes to a fairly secluded spot, “where we can be together quite undisturbed.”  
  
“You still want to fool around _here_?” asked Ron in amazement.  
  
“Grimmauld Place is going to be teeming with Order members, and Ministry people are going to be searching for me to take me away for questioning. But I don’t want to be with them – I want to be with you, and what I have in mind ought not be interrupted.” Harry hesitated. “You, er, you haven’t changed your mind, have you?”  
  
“No!” exclaimed Ron. “I’m just surprised that you don’t want to go out and celebrate.”  
  
Harry transfigured a mossy log into a comfortable quilt and pulled Ron down onto it with him. “I _do_ want to celebrate. I’ve been waiting for this day for months.”  
  
Ron’s cock was now achingly hard as Harry continued to leer at him seductively. “Months?” said Ron. “Don’t you mean years?”  
  
“No, not the day I kill Voldemort – _that’s_ been years. I’m talking about how long I’ve waited to make all of my fantasies about you come true.”  
  
“You’ve had fantasies? About me?” growled Ron.  
  
Harry set his wand and glasses on the corner of the quilt. “About you. About us. About me touching you everywhere.” As if to make his point, Harry leaned over to kiss the hollow of Ron’s neck, letting his tongue trail along Ron’s collarbone and brushing Ron’s skin with his lips. His hands moved down Ron’s chest to his groin, and it was turning on Ron something silly.  
  
“To be honest, I never actually thought about…um…doing this with you and… _God, Harry_ … and I’m not really sure what to do.” Ron’s chest was heaving as Harry’s mouth was seemingly everywhere at once. For all the times Ron and Hermione had been together, it never made him feel like this; his skin crackled with magic and he felt so _wanted_.  
  
Harry kissed his way up to Ron’s lips. “I don’t know what I’m doing, either. I just know that if I can’t feel your skin against mine soon, I’ll die.”  
  
Ron chuckled. “You’re not gonna die.” He stilled for a moment. Hadn’t he just said that to Harry a few hours ago? Except the stakes had been a lot higher then, and there really _had_ been a decent chance he would die. Harry wasn’t really taking this that seriously, was he? Weren’t they just fooling around?  
  
Reluctantly, Ron peeled Harry off of him and shifted so that they were facing each other. “Harry, I think we need to slow down.”  
  
Harry looked as if he’d just been sucker-punched, which in a way, he had been. “I thought you wanted this,” he said, unable to keep a slight quaver out of his voice.  
  
“I do. I don’t think I’ve ever been more turned on in my entire life. But I need to give my brain a little while to catch up with my body, though. You might have been thinking about us being together for months, but until a few hours ago, I was trapped in a hopeless relationship and just grateful to have you as my best mate. I mean, shit, Harry… Voldemort has only been dead for a half hour and you’re already trying to get me in the sack. Is that what _you_ really want, or is it the adrenaline talking?”  
  
Harry gently caressed Ron’s cheek. “I told you earlier – I’ve been thinking about us being together for months. It’s not adrenaline; it’s just excitement at knowing that I have a future now and I can go after what I really want.”  
  
Ron smiled. “That’s right. We have a future now. Which means we can take our time and do things the right way.”  
  
“What are you saying?”  
  
Ron steeled himself for the reaction he knew he was about to get. “I think I should break things off with Hermione first.”  
  
Harry glared at Ron with anxious eyes. It seemed to Ron that Harry didn’t believe that Ron had it in him to break up with Hermione in her current state. “If that’s what you want,” Harry said slowly.  
  
“It’s the right thing to do.” Ron swallowed hard, hating himself for disappointing Harry when he ought to be elated. “Of course, I’m eighteen years old, so the future for me is only about an hour.” He grinned, and felt his heart warm when Harry grinned back. “Shall we go tell her about Voldemort in person?”  
  
“Yeah,” said Harry. “And if the time seems right, I could leave you two to talk.”  
  
Ron pulled Harry close, snogging him as if it was the last kiss they’d ever share. God, he could feel Harry’s passion all the way down to his soul. It was intoxicating. “Come on,” he said slowly getting to his feet. “If we leave now, we might still have time to get lucky this evening.”  
  
~*~*~  
  
They arrived at St. Mungo’s under the cover of Harry’s Invisibility Cloak. They had no idea how fast the word of Voldemort’s demise would spread, and Harry didn’t fancy spending his first post-Voldemort night talking to reporters or being interrogated by the Ministry. When they reached the reception area, it appeared to be a normal chaotic day at the hospital – perhaps no one had heard about Voldemort yet. It would be best for Hermione to hear it first from Harry and Ron.  
  
“Ron! Harry! I’m so pleased to see you! I have exciting news,” gushed Hermione when they entered her room.  
  
“We do, too!” exclaimed Harry. “He’s gone, Hermione. I killed Voldemort!”  
  
Hermione rushed over to the doorway and pulled both Harry and Ron into a hug. There were tears of joy streaming down her face, and she muttered, “I _knew_ you could do it. Both of you.”  
  
After giving Hermione a moment to absorb their news, Ron asked, “Didn’t you say you had exciting news?”  
  
Hermione stepped back from Harry and Ron, and gazed at them. Immediately, Ron realized what had happened. “You can see, can’t you?” he asked.  
  
She nodded. “Sort of pales in comparison to killing Voldemort, but yes, the curse lifted a little while ago.”  
  
“Did the healers find a counter-curse then?”  
  
“No,” said Hermione. “It was about an hour ago, and I’d been sitting in my chair, but I must have dozed off, because when I opened my eyes I could see again.”  
  
Harry looked at his watch. “An hour ago? But that’s about the time I, um, I cast the curse.”  
  
A dawning comprehension spread across Hermione’s face. “Of course! It makes perfect sense. The hex from that Horcrux would only continue as long as the caster was alive. Once he died, it had no power.”  
  
“It’s just lucky you’ve finally got your eyesight back,” said Ron. He caught Harry’s eye and Harry winked at him. Lucky indeed.  
  
Hermione badgered Harry for all the details of their past week including the story of how he managed to defeat Voldemort. It did not escape Ron’s notice that Harry embellished Ron’s role in the events, to the point that Hermione interrupted him to say, “Ron, I’m impressed.”  
  
Harry had just finished his tale when they were interrupted by a knock on the door and Ginny Weasley poked her head into the room. When she saw Ron and Harry standing there, she ran to hug her brother and then Harry.  
  
“Dad’s just told me that it’s over – that You-Know-Who is dead. Congratulations, Harry! I want to hear all about it. But first, I need to hug this girl, because she can finally see!” Ginny gave Hermione a warm hug. “I rushed over as soon as I got your owl. Dad is thrilled for you, too.”  
  
Harry pulled on Ginny’s arm. “Come with me to get some tea, and I’ll tell you what happened.” He nodded towards Ron and Hermione. “I think they might need a few minutes alone.”  
  
Ron panicked slightly when Harry left him alone with Hermione – his girlfriend. But as the door closed behind them, he plucked up his courage and turned to face Hermione.  
  
“So you can see now. That’s brilliant,” he started.  
  
Hermione nodded, looking nearly as uncomfortable as Ron felt. “Yes. I don’t expect I’ll have to stay here for more than a couple of hours. Then I think I’ll visit my parents for a few days.”  
  
“Yeah,” said Ron with a shrug. “I’m sure they’ll appreciate that. Look, Hermione…”  
  
“Wait, Ron, before you say anything, there’s something I have to tell you.” Hermione sat on the bed and Ron sat in a visitor’s chair. “I’ve had a lot of time to think over the past month – well, really, thinking was the only thing I could do – and I’ve come to realize that I’m a different person when I’m with you. Different in a way that I don’t like.”  
  
“We’re no different together than we’ve always been,” said Ron cautiously.  
  
Hermione nodded. “Exactly. I thought that after we’d been together for a while we’d argue less and find more common ground, but it hasn’t happened.”  
  
Ron swallowed. “So you want to break up with me?”  
  
Tears welled in Hermione’s eyes, and she nodded. “I didn’t want to say anything while we were still looking for Horcruxes, because I knew Harry needed us to be there for him. But, yes, I think breaking up would be best.”  
  
“I can’t believe this.”  
  
“Oh, Ron, I still love you. It’s just that I love you like a friend – like the way I love Harry. And if there’s a way we can manage to still be friends, that’s what I want more than anything.”  
  
Ron moved over to the bed and hugged her. He couldn’t believe his luck – well, it had to be Felix, didn’t it? “You don’t have to feel bad, Hermione,” he said quietly. “I’ve known for a while it was over between us, even though we didn’t actually say it. I was…well, I was going to break up with you, too.” They looked into each other’s eyes, and Hermione cried again. “’Course we’ll be friends. Always. That is, unless you don’t want to be after I tell you the rest.”  
  
“The rest?”  
  
“Yeah. See, there’s someone else I’m interested in. We haven’t really been together yet because, you know, I was still going out with you, and, well, it’s a ‘him’.” Ron took a deep breath and searched Hermione’s face for a reaction.  
  
“A man? But I thought—”  
  
“I really never thought about blokes that way,” interrupted Ron. “But this one, he’s special.”  
  
Hermione was quiet for a moment, and Ron couldn’t tell whether she was surprised or upset. Finally she said, “Have you told Harry yet? Because I think he might have a bit of a crush on you.”  
  
Ron couldn’t hold back a grin. “Harry knows all about it. Harry’s the one.”  
  
Hermione’s head snapped up, in obvious surprise. “You and _Harry_? You’ve fancied each other this whole time? How could I have missed that? You’re always so obvious, Ron.”  
  
“No,” said Ron quickly, “I only just realized I fancied him this morning. He didn’t say anything until after he destroyed the sixth Horcrux. It was a shock to me as well.”  
  
“So I guess that Harry won’t be too upset, then, when Ginny tells him that she’s been dating someone else for months.”  
  
“Who?” demanded Ron.  
  
“Neville.”  
  
“Our Neville? Neville Longbottom? But he’s so—”  
  
“He’s so good to her. And he’s sweet. Really, Ron, if she can’t have Harry, she could do a lot worse than Neville.”  
  
They sat in awkward silence until Ron blurted, “So are you going to be okay with this? With me and Harry, I mean?”  
  
“I think so,” answered Hermione. “You and I tried our best, and it didn’t work out. I want you and Harry to be happy. You’re still my best friends.”  
  
Ron was touched beyond words, so he held Hermione close and kissed her. He glanced up when he saw movement in the doorway.  
  
“We’ll come back later,” said Harry quietly.  
  
“No! I was just kissing Hermione goodbye. Come in.” Ron gave Hermione’s hand one last squeeze and then stood next to Harry. He threaded their hands together, and Harry looked surprised, but pleased.  
  
Hermione wore a brave face, and she sounded sincere when she said, “I was telling Ron that you two are still my best friends, no matter what.”  
  
Harry hugged her then. “I wouldn’t even be here if it weren’t for you,” he said. “Your brains have saved my arse more times that I can remember, and my only regret is that you couldn’t be there to see me finish Voldemort off.”  
  
Hermione grinned. “Well, I’m not sorry that my sixteen-hour days of research have come to an end, but I have enjoyed our adventures together.”  
  
“You sure you don’t want to come out with us and celebrate?” Ron asked suddenly.  
  
“Not tonight,” replied Hermione. “I want to get out of St. Mungo’s and see my parents. I never told them about my blindness, so it’s been over a month, and I miss them. I’ll catch up with you in a day or two.”  
  
Harry and Ron kissed Hermione goodbye, leaving Ginny to sit with her for a while. Once they left the building, Ron relayed how Hermione had broken up with him before he had to do it, and Harry told Ron about Ginny’s new boyfriend. They laughed over how lucky they’d been that day.  
  
Harry stopped dead in his tracks. “I fancy a shower. Let’s go back to Grimmauld Place.”  
  
“I thought you wanted to stay away from there? You said it would be teeming with Order members.”  
  
“I just have this feeling that I should be there now.”  
  
Ron shrugged and he followed Harry’s lead by Apparating to Grimmauld Place. When they got there, they found the place empty.  
  
“So much for teeming with Order members. There’s not a soul here,” muttered Ron.  
  
Harry went down to the kitchen to look for people, but found only a note with Remus Lupin’s handwriting. He skimmed it and looked up at Ron, beaming.  
  
“Can you believe our luck? Lupin’s written to say that the entire Order is at the Leaky Cauldron celebrating. He says we should come along when we can, because if it’s anything like the first defeat of Voldemort, the party will last all night and straight into tomorrow.”  
  
Ron pulled Harry close. “I knew good things would happen if we waited awhile. Now, weren’t you saying something about a shower?”  
  
“We’ve still got a few hours to get lucky. I intend to make the most of them,” said Harry in a husky voice. And after kissing Ron hard enough to take his breath away, Harry pulled him up the staircase.  
  
~*~*~  
  
Ron awoke to a prickling sensation in his right arm. In a state of semi-consciousness, he tried to move it. _Oh, right_ , he thought, _Harry’s sleeping on it_. Ron’s eyes flew open. Harry was slumbering next to him, or perhaps wrapped around him was a better description. Ron realized that it hadn’t been a dream; they’d really stayed up until the wee hours of the morning having sex. Now that he thought about it, his hand wasn’t the only thing hurting. He wondered if Harry’s arse was as sore as his.  
  
His attempt to extract his arm from beneath Harry without waking him was fruitless. As soon as Ron moved, Harry shifted around to face him, lifting his weight from Ron’s arm long enough for him to pull it free.  
  
“Hi,” Harry said in a sleepy voice. “How are you feeling?”  
  
“Hand’s asleep,” answered Ron, rubbing and shaking said hand to get the circulation back. “You?”  
  
“I’m feeling happy,” he said with a soppy smile across his face. “Except my bum hurts like a son-of-a-bitch.”  
  
“Sorry. But I know what you mean.”  
  
Harry reached around to find Ron’s lips and kissed him possessively. “I’m not at all sorry. It was _so_ worth it.”  
  
They kissed a bit longer. Ron said with a chuckle, “When I first woke up, I thought yesterday might have been a dream.”  
  
“To be honest, I was worried that after the Felix Felicis wore off, my luck would run out and you’d be gone.”  
  
“Hermione would say that your luck has run out _because_ I’m still here,” chuckled Ron. He paused. “Is that what you think? That I’m only here because of the potion?”  
  
Harry blushed. “Well, you have to admit that you never gave me any indication that you’d be interested until after I took the Felix.”  
  
“Yeah, but I took it too, and we still ended up together. That would have been unlucky if I didn’t want it to happen. I want to be here, Harry.”  
  
“Ron, I—”  
  
“And,” continued Ron, “I got out of a miserable relationship to be with you. If that doesn’t say ‘I love you’, then I don’t know what does.”  
  
“You’re fantastic, you know that?” gushed Harry.  
  
“No,” said Ron. “I’m just lucky.”  
  
  
  
 _finis_


End file.
